Philip de Bruin, Beeld

Johannesburg - Former Springbok captain Joost van der Westhuizen has decided not to go ahead with legal action regarding the so-called Joost sex video.

Two weeks ago, Van der Westhuizen was still determined to file charges of extortion and defamation. He had also planned to take civil action against Heat magazine and Rapport newspaper.

Van der Westhuizen and Mike Bolhuis - hired as a special investigator by the ex-scrumhalf - took the decision not to proceed after discussions with advocate Jaap Cilliers, SC.

Bolhuis said a number of factors had led to the decision to advise Van der Westhuizen against taking action.

"Firstly, the damage to Joost and his wife (singer Amor Vittone) has already been done. The claims were initially steamrollered over them and they had no real chance to dispute it. That's why damage claims were considered.

"But on reflection we realise that such claims, given South Africa's weak judicial system, could be stretched out for a long time. Every time something happens in court, the media reports on it, and the whole unsavoury incident is dredged up again.

"Joost and Amor don't want that. The children are still small right now, but they are getting older and in a year or three, if the case is still ongoing, they could become aware of what's happening - to their detriment."

Secondly, Bolhuis added, the couple are fully aware of the financial implications of such actions in court.

"It's one thing for big media groups with lots of money to fight such actions, but for Joost, as an individual, it will cost too much money.

"They rather want closure on the incident, and, as a couple, would like to repair the damage that has been done in peace. They'd like to get on with their lives.

"Joost and Amor still love each other very much and are happily married. The longer this drags on, the more pressure it puts on them."

Bolhuis, however, was adamant that a full report related to the video would be submitted to the press ombudsman and that he would "have talks" with the police's organised crime unit regarding the background of the video.

"These actions come from my side though, and have nothing to do with Joost," he added.